The strategy is simple: Deny John Boehner the 218 votes he needs on the first ballot. Were that to occur, the thinking goes, the House GOP Leadership would recess the chamber, then call an immediate meeting of the House GOP Conference. The rebels would then have a chance to negotiate – either for a new compromise Speaker, or something(s) else they want. As long as they continue to hold firm and refuse to vote for Boehner for Speaker, he would be stymied – UNLESS he cut a deal with Minority Leader Pelosi (or some other group of Democrats) to have a number of THEM abstain or vote “present,” and thereby reduce the number of votes needed to reach a majority. For instance, let’s say Boehner only gets to 217 votes on the first ballot, one short of an absolute majority. If 10 Democrats were to vote “present” on the second ballot, that would reduce the number of votes cast “for a person by name” to 424, and thereby reduce the victory threshold from 218 to 213. Now, what would the Democrats get in exchange for ten abstentions? Who knows? What price the Speakership? Your guess is as good as mine. But it’s certainly a possibility.
Posted on: Mon, 05 Jan 2015 23:48:16 +0000
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